It was getting colder and colder, and the fog was getting thicker and thicker. Occasionally, it would snow.
More and more cultivators came to Cloudy Town. Some of them were kneeling outside the fog and kowtowing, trying to become Zhenren Jingyang's disciple. Some of them were standing at a distance, staring at the fog with a greedy look in their eyes. Some of them were cursing at the fog, shouting that they would avenge Zhenren Jingyang and kill the sword demon. However, none of them dared to actually rush into the fog. Scenes that were either absurd or ridiculous played out outside Cloudy Town and were updated every day.
The Aoyama Sect didn't seem to know what was happening in Cloudy Town. They didn't care at all.
As time went by, the cultivators confirmed Aoyama Sect's attitude. They were no longer nervous. They walked around Cloudy Town as they pleased. They even harassed the residents a few times. The situation didn't improve until a certain day.
An arrogant cultivator from the Celestial Sect, who thought that he was talented and the future of the righteous path, often shouted things that were not pleasant to the ear, such as demons, or being struck by lightning. The fog was still quiet and ignored him. So he became even more reckless. He even broke into a restaurant in Cloudy Town.
In the restaurant, after drinking a few jars of wine, the arrogant cultivator was about to do something even more outrageous.
At that moment, the clouds in the sky rolled, and the fog on the street suddenly dispersed. A blood-red lightning struck down from the sky!
The blood-red lightning accurately and magically passed through the roof of the restaurant and landed on the body of the arrogant cultivator from the Celestial Sect in the private room.
The arrogant cultivator from the Celestial Sect didn't even have time to defend himself. He was blasted into pieces by the blood-red lightning!
To be more precise, he wasn't blasted into pieces. He was only blasted into a dozen pieces of burnt flesh.
The cuts on the flesh were very smooth. There was no blood at all. It was obvious that they were cut by a flying sword.
In the cultivation world, this blood-red flying sword was very famous.
It didn't regret its death, hence the name Thoughtless.
That was Perfected Jingyang's original sword, which now belonged to Aoyama Sect's Shenmo Peak Sect Master, Zhao Layue.
Naturally, the mad man from the Tianqing Clan behaved himself, and so did the rest of the cultivators in Cloudy Town. The arrogant ones were rendered speechless, and they kowtowed even more sincerely, especially those cultivators who shouted that they wanted to kill the monster, and they even slipped away quietly.
Cloudy Town regained its peace, and the residents went back to their normal lives. The shops selling steamed cakes and buns reopened, and the residents even dared to say a few words to those Cultivation practitioners.
The restaurant had also reopened. The aroma of the hotpot drifted far away along with the mist, attracting many cultivators who had nothing to do. The private room on the second floor facing the street had never been opened, no matter how high the price the cultivators offered. As for things like threats and intimidation … no one had forgotten that the mad disciple of the Heaven Raising Sect, who had been blasted into pieces by the blood-colored lightning, had died in this restaurant.
"Why has no one ever heard of that sword? Isn't the Inherited Heaven Sword the chief sword of Aoyama? "
"During the battle of the West Ocean, many people knew that the Inherited Heaven Sword was not a sword, but a sheath. It was said that the sheath was used to contain the All in One Sword."
"Is that All in One Sword really a heavenly treasure?"
"Of course it is! If it is not a heavenly treasure, how could it have seized the spiritual soul of Perfected Jingyang and reincarnated as a human? "
"My fellow cultivator, please be careful. It was not the All in One Sword that seized the spiritual soul of Perfected Jingyang, but the Perfected reincarnated with the help of the sword."
Some of the cultivators in the restaurant had been here since the beginning, and some had arrived recently. Their discussions would always turn into arguments and even angry glares at each other, and the process kept repeating.
By now, the Cultivation world had basically confirmed that Jing Jiu was the sword monster, because there was too much evidence, and he had never dared to take out the Inherited Heaven Sword to prove it. Yet, the majority of the Cultivation practitioners in Cloudy Town believed that the person in the fog was the reincarnation of the Perfected Jingyang, or in other words, it was their wish.
Taiping Zhenren had asked Apiao to say, "It is not a self-evident truth who you are."
However, it was a self-evident truth who had the highest Cultivation state in the Cultivation world.
The Perfected Jingyang was the first person in Chaotian in a thousand years.
Even though he might fail in his ascension, he was still the first person in a thousand years.
This was the public opinion in the Cultivation world for hundreds of years.
The fake manor cave of the Perfected Jingyang had attracted so many Cultivation practitioners to take the risk to investigate it. The patch of fog might be the true body of the Perfected Jingyang; who wouldn't want to come and have a look? Even if they had no chance to meet him, it would be a great fortune to be able to see the patch of fog, be seen by the person in the fog, and absorb the same spiritual energy of heaven and earth at such a close distance.
Nothing could stop the Cultivation practitioners from pursuing the Dao.
The Perfected Jingyang was the Dao.
"Please take a seat, Cultivation friends. I'll go back to Scenery Garden now."
A monk of the Dongyi Daoist Sect put down the chopsticks in his hand and bowed to the Cultivation practitioners around the restaurant before walking out of the restaurant.
It had been a long time since the Grand Ceremony of Aoyama. The Aoyama Sect didn't pay any attention to these Cultivation practitioners in Cloudy Town, and nothing could be detected in the fog. Yet, the Cultivation practitioners had no intention of leaving. This monk of the Dongyi Daoist Sect would wait outside the patch of thick fog every day, except when he ate his meals, showing no sign of impatience.
There were many other Cultivation practitioners like him, and they all thought that the Perfected Jingyang was testing their willpower.
Looking at the back of the monk heading toward the outside of the town, a middle-aged man who looked like a scholar said in a mocking tone, "They come here every day to eat meat and drink wine … I heard that they don't forbid marriage. I wonder how the masters of the Guocheng Temple can tolerate these deviant monks. They should expel them from the Zen sects as soon as possible."
The rest of the Cultivation practitioners merely smiled without replying. Some of them stood up and chased after the monk.
The middle-aged scholar was taken aback for a moment, and then let out a self-mocking smile, saying, "Well, it's all right. I'll wait for another one hundred days."
Having said that, he put down a golden leaf and strode out of the restaurant.
The rest of the Cultivation practitioners smiled at each other and put down the golden leaves, saying that they would go together.
The manager of the restaurant walked out from the back of the restaurant. He picked up the golden leaves on the tables one by one and put them into his bag casually. Then he picked up the soup pot and poured some white soup for the last table. After chatting with the customers for a while, he walked back to the back of the restaurant with a calm expression on his face. It seemed that he didn't realize that the money he had collected that day was equivalent to the annual income of a big restaurant in Zhaoge City.
"This manager is a regular person, but he is obviously not ordinary. It looks like this restaurant is not an ordinary place."
The last table was occupied by a pair of master and his disciple. The older one was the elder of the Mysterious Heaven Sect, Zhou Yunmu, and the younger one was the current sect master of the Mysterious Heaven Sect, Lu Jin.
"I've heard a rumor that the Senior Master Zhao Layue likes eating hotpot very much." Lu Jin said, "I've inquired about the name earlier. It's said that there is a large manor house in that patch of fog. The people thought that this should be the second garden of the Immortal Jingyang, so they named it Scenery Garden."
Looking at the street outside the restaurant, Zhou Yunmu said, "Your Master was fortunate enough to cultivate to the Yuanying state and see more sceneries … Your talent is similar to mine, and your temperament is much better than mine. I don't want you to stay in your current Cultivation state because the Yuanying state is not enough. Now that there is such an opportunity, I hope you won't miss it."
"I fought alongside Jing Jiu … the Senior Master in the Cultivation tournament of the Plum Meeting, but I was actually under his protection, and that was thirty-two years ago."
Lu Jin was the most valued genius disciple of the Mysterious Heaven Sect. He entered the Cultivation tournament of the Plum Meeting with great difficulty, and was placed in the same group as Jing Jiu.
Since then, Jing Jiu had become the brightest star of the young generation in the Cultivation world, and later he became the Immortal Sect Master of the Aoyama Sect!
Lu Jin would recall the past once in a while, feeling sentimental.
As for whether he should pay a visit to Jing Jiu, he didn't even dare think about it.
In comparison to a huge sect like the Aoyama Sect, the Mysterious Heaven Sect was like an ant. The gap between the two sects was too large, and the Mysterious Heaven Sect couldn't reach it.
However, no one had expected such a change to occur. Jing Jiu might be the reincarnation of the Immortal Jingyang!
Regardless of whether he was the Immortal Jingyang or the Sword Devil, he had been expelled from Aoyama. Even though the possibility of him being the Sword Devil was still low, he was much closer to the human world. As such, he should consider paying a visit to Jing Jiu.
…
…
The so-called Scenery Garden couldn't be seen in the thick fog; it was only a figment of their imagination. The mountain stream flowed on the gentle slope. In the open space between the flowering trees, there were cultivators who were meditating with their eyes closed. There were also some … cultivators who were practicing their Dao or sword techniques. It was as lively as a market.
Seeing this, Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin were both startled, wondering what was going on.
"The Flowing Water Three-Flower Sect is the external sect of the No-Mercy Sect. Their sword styles are not bad, and this young man has a good talent; but does he think he can be chosen by the Immortal Jingyang? What are you thinking about? "
The middle-aged scholar who had appeared in the restaurant earlier said with a mocking expression while looking at the young Cultivation practitioner riding the sword in front of the fog, "Is he just flying around like that to perform acrobatics?"
Hearing this person's harsh words, Lu Jin said with a smile, "Everyone who comes here has something to ask for; there's no need for you to act like this, Cultivationist."
The middle-aged scholar said with a sneer, "I don't want to ask for any secret method of the sword work, and I'm not greedy enough to be taken as a personal disciple by the Immortal. It's just that someone in my family is sick, and the Guocheng Temple can't cure him, so I have no choice but to come here."
Someone in his family was sick. This statement sounded quite normal, but it was obviously not the case; otherwise, why would he come here after asking the Guocheng Temple for help?
Lu Jin felt a bit sympathetic, and thought that since the illness couldn't be cured by the Guocheng Temple, it must be very troublesome; why would he come here to ask the Immortal Jingyang for help?
Zhou Yunmu said, "The Immortal Jingyang is half a master to the Zen Master; and as the saying goes, if you understand one method, you will understand all methods. So, he might have a way to cure the illness."
The middle-aged scholar's countenance softened a bit, as he remarked, "You're quite knowledgeable."
"I'm Lu Jin of the Mysterious Heaven Sect," said Lu Jin.
The middle-aged scholar's expression changed slightly as he said, "Are you the Sect Leader of the Mysterious Heaven Sect? Are you the Senior Zhou Yunmu? "
Upon hearing this, the Cultivation practitioners in the surroundings looked at them in tandem, and then came over to greet them.
The Mysterious Heaven Sect was a small Cultivation sect in the Cultivation world, but it had two outstanding Sect Masters, Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin. A few years ago, Zhou Yunmu had become a swordsman in the Yuanying State, a rarely seen swordsman among the small Cultivation sects and the free-traveling Cultivation practitioners.
Why did they come to Cloudy Town?
As the Cultivation practitioners were pondering over this question, a surprised scream burst out from somewhere.
"The gate is open … Scenery Garden is open!"
…
…
The thick fog hadn't dispersed yet, and Scenery Garden hadn't shown its true appearance, let alone opened the gate.
They had waited for many days, and the day had finally come. Those Cultivation practitioners didn't react immediately, standing on the same spots in a daze.
A moment later, they came back to their senses. Their bodies trembled slightly, but they didn't dare take a step forward, standing on the same spots.
Yuan Qu walked out from the courtyard and asked the crowd, "Where are the Cultivation friends of the Mysterious Heaven Sect?"
Countless gazes fell on Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin.
Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin were also startled, wondering what was going on. But they didn't dare delay. They strode to the front of the courtyard and bowed to Yuan Qu, indicating their identities.
Yuan Qu reached out his right hand, motioning for them to follow him into the courtyard.
The rest of the Cultivation practitioners were in an uproar, thinking that even if Zhou Yunmu was a rare swordsman in the Yuanying State of a small Cultivation sect, how could they be inferior to him?
Some of them took a few steps forward reflexively, intending to talk to Yuan Qu.
Yuan Qu didn't do anything, but shot a glance at these people indifferently.
Though he didn't seem to exist on the Shenmo Peak, his gaze was as cold as the snow, showing a bit of the awe-inspiring aura of a granduncle.
Those people were startled, not daring to take a single step forward.
"Sect Master Lu!"
A trembling shout suddenly broke out in the crowd.
The middle-aged scholar took a few steps forward and knelt down on the ground with a thud, holding up a booklet that had been edited in good condition.
The cold winter wind ruffled the booklet, exposing the old and new ink words.
It was neither a magic method nor a list of treasures to be offered as offerings, but a medical record and a prescription …
He didn't ask Lu Jin to bring him to Scenery Garden; all he wanted was to find a chance of survival for his family.
Lu Jin was fully aware that it was a rare opportunity that day. If he annoyed the immortal masters of Aoyama in Scenery Garden, he would have a great regret.
Yet, as his Master Zhou Yunmu had said, he had an extraordinary temperament. Without thinking too much, he bowed to Yuan Qu.
Yuan Qu nodded to indicate that it didn't matter.
Lu Jin took the medical record from the middle-aged scholar's hand, and turned around to enter Scenery Garden.
Seeing the front gate of Scenery Garden closed again, the middle-aged scholar's face turned pale, his lips quivering slightly; it was unclear whether he was nervous or expectant.
…
…
It didn't take long before the front gate was opened again, and Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin walked out.
The fog enshrouded the mountains and fields again, and Scenery Garden disappeared from the human world again.
All the Cultivation practitioners crowded around them, trying to establish a friendly relationship with this pair of master and disciple, asking them about the situation inside and what they had learned.
Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin didn't answer them, nor did they slow down their steps. They walked straight to the front of the middle-aged scholar.
Lu Jin returned the medical record to him and said while shaking his head, "I'm sorry. The Immortal doesn't have any solution."
Hearing this, the middle-aged scholar's face grew paler, as if he had been struck by a thunder. His body swayed and he almost fell down.
"My condolences, my Cultivationist," Lu Jin said to him sympathetically.
The middle-aged scholar took the medical record with his trembling hand, and his knuckles turned white as he squeezed it.
However, he didn't tear up the medical record in the end; it was unclear whether it was because he felt hopeless and helpless, or he didn't want to tear it up.
A moment later, he calmed down and put away the medical record carefully, bowing to Zhou Yunmu and Lu Jin to express his gratitude.
After that, he bowed to Scenery Garden in the thick fog.
Then, he turned around and walked toward the outside of the mountain.
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